Picks for the College Football Playoff week 2
It’s probably a little too early to look at who might be the final four teams remaining for the College Football Playoff, but hey why not? Week 2 of college football was a wild one, but not quite enough to shake up what many believe will be the four in the College Football Playoff. With that, let's take a look at the four best teams.
*Note: I will not be including the Big Ten or Pac-12 until they start playing games. While I think Ohio State is one of the four best teams in the country, you have to play games, and the Big Ten won’t play until late October. The SEC doesn’t start until next week, but they will get the benefit of the doubt and be included in these rankings.*
No. 1: Clemson Tigers (1-0) (LW: 37-13 W vs Wake Forest)
I hope you didn’t think I was going to put anyone else here. Clemson looked exactly like they should after their opening week. Trevor Lawrence was spotless, 22/28 for 351 yards and one touchdown, and added two more scores on the ground. Two-time ACC POY Travis Etienne eclipsed 100 yards on the ground and six yards a tote. The game was never in doubt, the Tigers led 27-0 at halftime and didn’t allow a touchdown until the game was over in the fourth quarter. It was nice to see two freshmen shine on the defensive line, five-star Myles Murphy led the team with seven tackles and two sacks, while five-star Bryan Bresee added a half-sack of his own. I don’t expect Clemson to move from this spot for most of the season, they’ll be heavily favored in every game on their remaining schedule. Circle the calendar for November 7 at Notre Dame.
No. 2: Oklahoma Sooners (1-0) (LW: 48-0 vs Missouri State)
Playing an FCS team isn’t going to move the playoff needle all that much, but because the Sooners actually played this weekend (unlike the SEC), and Oklahoma is coming off its’ third straight playoff appearance, I think we can give Oklahoma the benefit of the doubt. For the fourth year in a row, Lincoln Riley had a new quarterback under center for week one, and freshman Spencer Rattler looked as good as advertised. The former five-star only played the first half, going 14/17 290 yards and four touchdowns, exiting with a 41-0 lead at halftime. Charleston Rambo snagged a pair touchdowns and 12 different Sooners caught passes. There’s no CeeDee Lamb in this receiving core, and I think we are going to have to wait until later in the season to see his true replacement. The defense didn’t allow a point and only allowed 135 yards. Let’s take it with a grain of salt and see how they play against an FBS opponent. Good enough for No. 2 in these initial ranking though.
No. 3: Alabama Crimson Tide (0-0) (LW: N/A)
For the first time in the playoff era, there was no Alabama in the field last season. Does Nick Saban have enough in redshirt junior Mac Jones to make the push back into the playoff? No Joe Burrow to stand in the way this time, so the public would think so. Jones stepped in for an injured Tua Tagovailoa last season and delivered 14 touchdowns to only three interceptions. Jones will start the opener vs Missouri next week, but don’t be surprised if we see five-star freshman Bryce Young take meaningful snaps sometime this year. Saban hasn’t been afraid to push his freshman into big spots (Jalen Hurts, Tua Tagovailoa). It’s also a whole lot easier when you get to hand it off to Najee Harris and throw it out to DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle on the outside. This Alabama offense should remain explosive, while the defense, should it remain healthy, will be back to being one of the top units in the country.
No. 4: Florida Gators (0-0) (LW: N/A)
If everyone was playing, this spot would go to Ohio State. By the end of the season, I’m sure the Buckeyes will occupy one of these four spots, but for now, it's going to the next-best SEC team, which I think is Florida. Like most, I use the quarterback as a tiebreaker, and I’ll take Kyle Trask returning for his second season as a starter over J.T. Daniels (Georgia) and Myles Brennan (LSU) both starting for the first time for their respective programs. Trask welcomes back a strong defense and TE Kyle Pitts who should be amongst the top TE in the country, and he’s going to need that, losing Freddie Swain and Van Jefferson to the NFL. Can he improve off the 25/7 TD/INT he had last season? Can Florida win a big game under Dan Mullen? There will be plenty of opportunities. At Texas A&M, vs LSU, and vs Georgia are all top-10 matchups. I would imagine the Gators would need to win two of these three for people to take them seriously. We shall see.
Next few:
Georgia
LSU
Notre Dame
Writer
-By: Tj Mathewson